Boys basketball: Wolfpack tops Wildcats

COLUMBIA FALLS — Forced to slow down the pace for most of the game, the Class AA No. 3 Glacier boys used their superior height and length to fend off Class A No. 3 Columbia Falls 67-42 in a nonconference basketball contest Thursday evening.

Glacier got center Ryan Edwards going early, feeding the 7-foot senior in the post, where he picked up six points in the first quarter. Edwards was strong on the defensive end as well, picking up three blocks in the opening period.

“I thought for the first time this season we really got Ryan involved early and he responded very well,” Glacier coach Mark Harkins said.

Edwards finished with a season-high 15 points, along with eight rebounds and four blocks.

“It was his best game of the season, no question,” Harkins said. “He did well, but the kids did a good job of finding him as well.”

Columbia Falls hung tough in the first quarter, with junior Alex Presnell leading the way. The Wildcats point guard put together an array of tough shots to keep his team close, dropping a floater high off the glass to clear the Wolfpack’s big center, spinning through the lane and knocking in a fadeaway and finishing the frame with a 3-pointer at the buzzer over a pair of outstretched arms. His heroics kept the Wildcats within three points after the first at 15-12.

But it was Glacier’s length, both with Edwards inside and its wings and guards on the outside, that gave Columbia Falls fits. The Wildcats weren’t able to find enough shots to keep up, making just one field goal in the second quarter and falling behind by double-digits, a mark they wouldn’t crack for the rest of the game.

“We missed some opportunities in the first half,” Columbia Falls head coach Cary Finberg said. “We knew going in that we needed to shoot the ball well and take advantage of certain situations. We just didn’t do that.

“Once you dig a hole against a team like that, it’s tough to get out of.”

Glacier expanded its lead in the second half, getting contributions from all over the court. Kyle Griffith had his best game of the season, scoring 13 points, including eight in the third quarter. Reid Siderius scored 10 off the bench. In total, nine players scored for the Wolfpack.

“They have a great program up here,” Harkins said. “Any time you can come up here and get a win I’m happy with how our team played.”

Columbia Falls shot just 34 percent in the game, and just 25 percent in the first half. The Wildcats were unable to hit from outside, shooting just 2 for 8 from 3-point range in the game.

“We battled, we just needed to shoot the ball better than we did tonight,” Finberg said.

“Thats a tough matchup for us. We matchup better against certain teams than we do against Glacier. That’s just a tough matchup for us.”

Jared Trinastich led the Wildcats with 12 points. Luke Kazlauskas scored 10 and Presnell and Ty Morgan each scored nine.

Glacier (6-1) will host Lake City (Coeur d’Alene, Idaho) on Saturday in a makeup game from earlier this season. Columbia Falls (6-2) will look to rebound at Whitefish (5-3) on Saturday.

Glacier 15 17 17 18 — 67

Columbia Falls 12 6 12 12 — 42

GLACIER — Kyle Griffith 6-13 0-0 13, Evan Epperly 2-5 1-3 6, Logan Iverson 3-7 1-2 8, Matt Peters 3-6 0-0 7, Ryan Edwards 7-9 1-2 15, Charlie Obermiller 1-3 0-0 2, Reid Siderius 4-4 1-2 10, Bryan Michaels 1-4 2-2 4, Kalen Reed 1-3 0-0 2. Totals: 28-55 6-11 67.

COLUMBIA FALLS — Alex Presnell 3-9 2-2 9, Luke Kazlauskas 3-9 4-6 10, Ty Morgan 3-5 2-2 9, Jared Trinastich 4-10 4-6 12, Mason Gedlaman 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 14-41 12-28 42.

3-pointers — Glacier 5-11 (Griffith, Epperly, Iverson, Peters, Siderius), CF 2-8 (Presnell, Morgan). Rebounds — Glacier 35 (Edwards 8), CF 21 (Trinastich 5). Assists — Glacier 15 (Epperly, Griffith 3), CF 3 (Kazlauskas, Morgan, Gedlaman). Blocks — Glacier 5 (Edwards 4), CF 0. Steals — Glacier 15 (Epperly 7), CF 8 (Kazlauskas 3). Fouls — Glacier 19, CF 12. Technical fouls — none. Fouled out — none.